Cold Winter Touches The North Country

Of course I knew it was coming, yet still I was surprised to see the frost all over the Rugosa roses when I went out to do the morning chores:

 The leaves were frosted and the magenta buds were covered with icy crystals:

 Some of the flowers had wilted to the point of being unrecognizable:

 Fergus and Seamus watched me from their frosty yard as I began the morning chores:

There were only two open Daylilies left, and they were wilted and covered in ice:

 And the grass crunched underfoot as I walked to the barn:

 Sadly, the sunflowers, which had put on such a late season show, were done for the year:

 I walked the little horses out to their corral and discovered that their stock tank was covered in ice. Remy and Blue were not amused, but I figured it would melt once the sun was fully up:

The cattle were hungry and collected at the barn, demanding grain:

 I let them have some, then shooed them back outside as I carried hay to the horse corral. Most of the cattle followed me to the corral, hoping to steal that armload of hay. I guess they did not want to eat frozen grass:

 I tossed the hay in for the horses without giving the cattle any of it. Ruby knew what to do, and immediately went for a breakfast of warm milk:

Cattle, Horses, Flowers

Autumn seems to be in the air some days, and it feels like summer on other days. The Red Polls enjoyed the idyllic weather this day, spreading farther apart than they do when the flies are more pesky:

And they often come to the stock tank as a group to get a drink of water:

The pasture has lots to eat in it, so the red haired ladies have much spare time for snoozing and lounging around:

Winston sniffed the air when I came near. Should I be insulted?

I find a scene like this each morning when I bring the horses out to their corral for the day:

Remy and Blue seem fairly happy in their corral and accustomed with their new routine:

I had to begin spraying both little horses with fly spray each morning before taking them outside. At first, that prevented the bot flies from laying eggs on their legs and sides, but after a few weeks, the bot fly eggs began to appear again. I now have to scrape them off carefully each time I bring them into the barn and also spray them with more fly repellent:

Blue likes to lie down and then bobs his head up and down. I was worried at first that something might be wrong, but apparently it's just something he likes to do:

And both horses love to roll on the ground:

The first Rose Mallow to bloom was this giant pink one. Notice the abundance of buds behind it - and that's only one of many shoots which will be blooming. I think it will be a good year for Rose Mallows:

I began snapping photos of the various colors and color combinations in the Yarrow patch but there were just too many of them. Instead, I put the photos together to make one big picture of SOME of the color varieties. I find these plants amazing:

Big Red Polls, Little Horses

Jasmine has been looking healthier than ever before and I am encouraged to think she might become productive again. Formerly, her obesity prevented her from coming into heat. I suspect she's begun cycling again, though. I've been keeping notes on my calendar:

Winston is happy, healthy and curious:

The herd is often found all in a row, ideal for photos:

Winston in his frequent pose, watching me with curiosity. This time he had poop on his head:

It's almost as if they line up for photos, but I think the real reason is that they like to press against each other to brush off/crush the flies:

Winston and his Aunt Jasmine came in for a drink of cool water. He seems to hang around with her more than with the others:

I always lead Remy in and out of the barn first, so in the evening Blue has to wait, tied to a tree, until I return for him:

They spend their nights in the barn, protected from too many flies and with plenty of hay and water:

In the morning, I spray them both with fly spray, then lead Remy out and tie him to the tree while I fetch Blue:

When both horses begin their day in the corral, they play briefly and then begin searching for grass to eat. I bring hay out right away, but they'd rather have green grass:

In the evening, I go out to the corral to bring them in. This night, Winston and several cows were just outside the horses' fence:

The Red Polls In Summer

Little Winston is looking great, and I've had more people stopping in to ask about buying him. Even after I say he can't be a herd sire because he'll be sterile, they still seem to want him - but it will have to wait now until he's five or six months old so I can get him into the barn and away from his mom:

Scarlett is due to calve soon and makes frequent trips in for mineral supplements and water:

And sometimes the whole herd lounges near the compost/manure pile:

They are a happy, healthy bunch except perhaps for the obesity of some of them and the pesky flies in the summertime:

But life is good, and the scenery is beautiful:

Scarlett and Rosella, mother and daughter, one pregnant and one making milk for her calf, need lots of water and often come to the stock tank together:

Winston often runs to greet me when I'm in the field, coming surprisingly close and regarding me with fascination:

They drink lots of water in this hot weather:

I began letting the stock tank overflow in order to clean out the algae and keep the water fresh. It worked well except that I developed a big patch of gooey mud. I had to stop the practice, or at least do it less often:

The cattle have created many dust baths around the pasture, this one right next to the horses' corral. This a place where they kick the sandy soil up onto their bellies in an attempt to chase away the biting flies:

Rosella on her way to the stock tank to refill her milk making supply of water yet again:

Winston wanted to sleep but the cows wanted to move on:

July In The North Country

The Red Polls spend their days and nights in the pasture, and sometimes I don't even see them. But they come back to the barn regularly to drink from the stock tank and lounge on the hay they wasted last winter:

Blue and Remy have had their yearly vaccinations and their hooves trimmed again:

 They are looking good, and staying inside their corral (so far):

 The small chicken door I originally made was simply a square, cut from the barn wall. It finally got so rotten that half of its guts just fell out, leaving it mostly hollow. I brought it into the barn so I could try to repair it:

I'm certainly no carpenter and was distressed at the poor job I was making of the repair, but when it was finally done, it at least worked for its intended purpose:

 And it closed more or less tightly. I may want to add some kind of weatherstripping in the winter, but all in all, it serves the need:

 The strip of sunflower seedlings is growing faster each day, to the point where I can sometimes see a difference from one day to the next. As the sunflowers get taller and leafier, the dogs are losing their view of me when I'm working around the front of the barn:

 The little rock garden began to glow with bright yellow Asiatic Lilies:

And the two Blue Sea Holly plants are so huge that they threaten to take over the entire space. They seem on the verge of becoming "The Beast That Ate Cleveland:"

 But they are fascinating, an odd plant with an odd flower:

 The red and orange Asiatic Lilies, the first to bloom, finally petered out with this final burst of color:

 The six multicolored Yarrow plants are beginning to take off, and one of them is sending up a flower spike. The buds look white, which I hope is not the color they're going to be when in flower. Just to the right of them are the Chives, one of the only seeds which grew successfully. Behind the Chives are unknown plants which might be weeds or might be Globe Thistle. Only time will tell: